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PAINTING  BY  DANIEL  HUNTINGTON, 


PRESENTED  TO  THE 


cum  or  coun  or  THE  STATE  OF  mnoai 


NIAY  23d,    1895, 


By  MORRIS  K.  JESUP,  Chairman  of  the  Committee, 


AND  RECEIVED  BY 


ALEXANDER  E.  ORR,  President  of  the  Chamber. 


ADDRESS  BY  THE  HON.  CHAUNCEY  M.  DEPEW. 


NEW- YORK: 
PRESS  OP  THE  CHAMBER  OF  COMMERCE. 


1895. 


SPECIAL  COMMITTEE. 


MORRIS  K.  JESUP, 
ABRAM  S.  HEWITT,  WILLIAM  E.  DODGE. 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE. 


IT  is  a  matter  of  pride  for  America  that  the  pro- 
ject of  an  Atlantic  Telegraph  originated  on  this  side 
of  the  ocean.  No  doubt  the  possibility  of  it  had 
occurred  to  many  minds,  but  it  was  all  a  dream, 
until  an  American  had  the  courage  to  strike  out 
into  the  deep,  with  the  determination  to  make  it  a 
reality.  So  fully  was  this  recognized  abroad  that 
JOHN  BKIGHT  was  accustomed  to  speak  with  enthu- 
siasm of  "his  friend,  CYRUS  FIELD,"  as  "the  COLUM- 
BUS of  modern  times,  who  had  moored  the  New 
World  close  alongside  the  Old."  But  proud  as  any 
man  must  be  of  such  praise  from  the  Great  Com- 
moner of  England  to  an  American,  no  recognition 
could  be  quite  so  dear  as  that  of  his  own  country- 
men. When  the  first  cable  was  laid  in  1858,  the 
Chamber  of  Commerce  elected  Mr.  FIELD  an  hono- 
rary member,  and  gave  him  a  gold  medal.  And 
again,  in  1866,  when  the  final  success  was  assured, 
it  was  celebrated  by  a  banquet,  at  which  the  late 


6 

Mr.  A.  A.  Low  presided,  and  at  which  were  present 
not  only  the  merchants  and  bankers  who  compose 
this  great  commercial  body,  but  men  of  distinction 
from  different  parts  of  the  country,  the  Army  and 
Navy  being  represented  by  their  highest  officers, 
General  MEADE  and  Admiral  FAERAGUT.  Now  the 
Chamber  of  Commerce — as  the  proper  guardian  of 
the  name  and  fame  of  its  own  members — completes 
its  gracious  office  of  commemoration  by  a  more  per- 
manent memorial  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph  in  a 
historical  painting  of  Mr.  FIELD  and  his  honored 
associates,  that,  as  it  hangs  upon  the  walls  of  the 
Chamber,  will  remind  those  who  come  after  us 
what  manner  of  men  they  were  who  achieved  so 
great  a  work  for  their  country  and  for  the  world. 

NEW- YOKE,  May  30,  1895. 


REMARKS  OF  MORRIS  K.  JESUP,  CHAIRMAN  OF  THE 
COMMITTEE. 

MR.   PRESIDENT  AND  FELLOW   MEMBERS   OF  THE 
CHAMBER   OF   COMMERCE  : 

In  October,  1892,  the  Chamber  requested  its 
Executive  Committee  to  suggest  some  plan  by  which 
an  appropriate  and  lasting  memorial  of  the  great 
work  of  Mr.  CYRUS  W.  FIELD  in  the  establishment 
of  the  Atlantic  Cable  might  be  preserved. 

On  the  6th  of  April  following,  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee reported  that  after  consideration  of  the 
matter,  and  in  view  of  their  knowledge  of  the  long 
cherished  desire  of  Mr.  FIELD  that  the  memory  of 
the  achievement  should  be  perpetuated  in  the  form 
of  a  great  historical  painting,  in  which  the  linea- 
ments and  figures  of  the  projectors  should  appear, 
they  recommend  that  arrangements  be  made  with 
Mr.  DANIEL  HUNTINGTON,  the  distinguished  artist, 
.to  execute  a  work  of  this  character,  to  be  displayed 
upon  the  walls  of  the  Chamber. 

This  recommendation  was  unanimously  adopted 
and  a  Special  Committee  appointed  to  carry  it  out. 

Of  this  Committee,  I  had  the  honor  of  being  made 


8 

Chairman,  with  Messrs.  ABRAM  S.  HEWITT  and 
WILLIAM  E.  DODGE,  as  associates. 

Shortly  after,  a  conference  was  had  with  the 
artist,  and  after  hearing  from  him  a  description  of 
the  proposed  work,  an  order  was  given  for  its 
execution. 

Mr.  HUNTINGTON  at  once  entered  upon  the  diffi- 
cult and  laborious  task,  and  for  more  than  a  year 
has  given  it  the  closest  attention  and  applied  to  it 
his  best  skill ;  the  result  you  now  have  before  you. 

In  this  connection,  I  beg  to  read  a  letter  received 
from  the  artist  a  few  days  ago,  in  which  he  gives  a 
brief  statement  of  the  origin  of  the  painting. 

49  EAST  20TH  STREET, 

May  20,  1895. 
MY  DEAR  MR.  JESUP  : 

The  first  thought  of  a  picture  representing  the 
Projectors  of  the  Atlantic  Telegraph  came  from  Mr. 
CYRUS  W.  FIELD.  He  called  at  my  studio  soon 
after  the  final  and  complete  success  of  the  cable  of 
1866,  and  consulted  me  about  painting  such  a  group. 
I  went  with  him  to  his  house  on  Gramercy  Park, 
and  he  sent  a  message  to  Mr.  PETER  COOPER,  who 
came  and  took  the  chair,  as  he  was  accustomed  to 
preside.  Mr.  FIELD  stood  by  the  table,  with  charts 
and  globe  at  hand,  as  he  usually  stood  when  ex- 


9 

plaining  his  plans.  I  then  made  sketches  for  the 
proposed  picture.  Mr.  ROBERTS  was  consulted,  and 
approved  of  the  idea.  Other  members  of  the  Board 
differed  in  opinion,  and  there  was  some  opposition ; 
the  purpose  was,  therefore,  postponed  indefinitely, 
Mr.  FIELD  expressing  great  disappointment.  For 
many  years  nothing  more  was  thought  of  it.  In  the 
spring  of  1892  he  suffered  from  a  severe  illness,  and 
on  one  of  the  days  of  a  partial  rally,  though  so 
feeble  that  he  could  scarcely  walk,  he  called  on  me 
and  on  Mr.  AVERT  to  ask  our  approval,  as  a  Com- 
mittee of  the  Museum  of  Art,  of  his  desire  to  pre- 
sent to  that  institution  all  the  memorials  of  the 
Atlantic  Cable,  the  pictured  incidents  and  scenes. 
On  that  day  I  said  to  him,  "It  was  a  misfortune 
that  the  picture  he  had  proposed  of  the  Cable  Pro- 
jectors had  not  been  executed,"  to  which  he  replied, 
"  Yes,  it  was  a  sad  mistake,  and  I  fear  it  is  too  late 
and  will  never  be  done."  I  mentioned  this  conver- 
sation to  Mr.  WILSON,  soon  after  Mr.  FIELD'S 
death,  and  he  said  at  once,  "  I  do  not  think  it  is  too 
late,  and  I  hope  it  may  yet  be  done."  The  next 
thing  I  heard  was  that  Mr.  JESUP  had  brought  the 
subject  up  before  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  and 
that  a  Committee,  composed  of  Messrs.  JESUP,  DODGE 
and  HEWITT,  had  been  named,  under  whose  counsel, 


10 

authority  and  encouragement,  I  began  the  picture 
early  in  the  year  1894,  and  the  result  you  have  now 
seen.  I  may  add  that  I  have  had  the  advantage  of 
a  personal  acquaintance  with  all  the  persons  intro- 
duced, (and  have  painted  portraits  of  them  all,} 
except  Mr.  CHANDLEE  WHITE,  who  died  in  1856, 
Mr.  WILSON  Gr.  HCJNT  becoming  a  Director  in  his 
place. 

Truly  yours, 

D.    HUNTINGTON. 

MORKIS  K.  JESUP,  Esq. 

And  now,  Mr.  President,  it  is  my  pleasing  duty  as 
Chairman  of  the  Committee  to  present  to  the  Cham- 
ber through  you  this  beautiful  and  artistic  painting, 
designed  to  commemorate  a  great  scientific  achieve 
ment,  the  value  of  which  we  all  recognize,  and 
which  will  be  better  appreciated  by  future  genera- 
tions. Several  of  the  individuals  whose  faces  are 
set  forth  in  the  painting  have  been  members  of  the 
Chamber  and  familiar  to  us,  especially  Mr.  FIELD, 
the  man  who,  by  his  courage  and  indomitable 
energy,  gave  to  the  world  that  voice  that  now 
speaks  to  us  in  silent  tones,  bringing  together  in 
closer  relations  all  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

In  conclusion,  I  beg  to  acknowledge  the  liberality 
of  those  who  enabled  the  Chamber  to  become  the 


11 

possessor  of  this  great  work  of  art,  and  to  express 
to  them  its  appreciation  and  thanks. 

Mr.  JESUP  read  the  following  letter  from  Mr. 
Justice  FIELD,  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court : 

SUPREME  COURT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES, 
WASHINGTON,  D.  C., 

May  20ta,  1895. 

To  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  New- York  : 

GENTLEMEN:  I  have  to  acknowledge  your  kind 
invitation  to  be  present  at  the  unveiling  of  the 
painting  of  the  Projectors  of  the  Atlantic  Cable. 
Pew  subjects  are  more  worthy  of  the  genius  of 
the  artist  or  the  historian.  When  COLUMBUS  dis- 
covered the  New  World,  it  was  almost  as  far 
away  from  the  Old  World  as  if  it  had  been  in 
another  planet.  Improvements  in  the  art  of  naviga- 
tion brought  the  continents  nearer  to  each  other; 
but  it  was  reserved  to  modern  science  to  make  it 
possible  to  have  instantaneous  communication. 
The  mere  conception  was  almost  a  Divine  inspira- 
tion, but  to  carry  it  into  execution  was  the  work  of 
twelve  laborious  years — years  interrupted  by  defeats 
and  disappointments,  that  would  have  broken  down 
the  courage  of  most  men.  All  this  I  had  reason  to 


12 

know  from  my  relation  to  one  who  took  such  a 
part  in  the  enterprise,  and  hence,  I  should  be  with 
you  on  an  occasion  of  so  much  interest,  but  that  it 
comes  in  the  very  last  week  of  the  Court.  You 
need,  however,  no  individual  presence.  The  great 
painting  before  you  speaks  for  itself.  The  faces 
there  portrayed  are  familiar  to  the  people  of  New- 
York  as  among  those  of  their  most  honored  citizens. 
All  of  them  are  now  gone  from  the  world,  but  the 
remembrance  of  what  they  did  may  well  be  a  matter 
of  pride  to  their  children,  and  it  is  fitting  that 
this  historic  scene  should  be  put  on  canvas  by  your 
distinguished  artist,  and  placed  in  the  great  hall  of 
your  Chamber  of  Commerce,  to  preserve  the  memory 
of  it  to  future  generations. 

I  am,  with  great  respect, 

Yours  very  sincerely, 

STEPHEN  J.  FIELD. 


13 


ADDRESS  BY  THE  HON.  CHAUNCEY  M.  DEPEW. 

MR.  PRESIDENT  AND  GENTLEMEN:  The  picture 
which  is  hung  to-day  upon  the  walls  of  the  Cham- 
ber of  Commerce  illustrates  one  of  the  great  events 
of  history.  The  men  who  are  portrayed  in  it  are 
representative  of  American  pluck  and  opportunity. 
Each  of  them,  in  his  own  way,  did  much  for  the 
commercial  greatness  of  the  metropolis  and  the 
grandeur  of  the  commerce  of  our  country.  They 
were,  in  the  broadest  and  best  sense,  self-made  men. 
They  were  not  accidents,  but  architects.  They  com- 
menced life  without  fortune  or  influence,  with  no 
other  capital  than  character  and  brains,  and  won 
power,  fame  and  fortune. 

The  conditions  attendant  upon  the  acquisition  of 
wealth  dry  up  generous  impulses  and  make  the  pos- 
sessors hard,  cold  and  unsympathetic.  The  notable 
exceptions  to  the  rule  are  the  more  deserving  of 
admiration  and  praise.  These  six  New-Yorkers 
and  Americans  had  never  permitted  their  failures  or 
their  successes  to  dim  their  enthusiasm  or  dull  their 
imagination.  Though  the  most  practical  of  business 
men,  yet  they  could  risk  their  money  and  their 


14 

reputations  upon  a  scheme  which,  in  its  beginnings, 
had  little  else  to  recommend  it  but  patriotism  and 
humanity. 

Those  who  win  great  wealth  suddenly  or  fortu- 
itously, risk  it  with  a  recklessness  born  of  the  ease 
with  which  it  came.  But  they  who  have  slowly  and 
laboriously  climbed  the  ladder  of  fortune,  look  with 
suspicion  upon  enterprises,  the  opportunities  of 
which  have  not  been  thoroughly  tested  and  tried. 
They  know  that,  with  their  experience  and  demon- 
strated ability,  they  can  outstrip  their  fellows  and 
secure  success  where  less  able  but  more  adventurous 
travelers  have  beaten  the  path  and  shown  the  way. 

The  six  gentlemen  who  gathered  in  CYRUS  W. 
FIELD'S  parlor  on  March  10th,  1854,  were  splendid 
examples  of  American  success.  CYRUS  FIELD,  the 
son  of  a  Connecticut  clergyman  who  had  naught  to 
give  his  family  but  an  education  and  an  example, 
had  retired  from  business  with  a  fortune  at  thirty-five. 
His  brother,  DAVID  DUDLEY,  stood  in  the  front  rank 
of  American  lawyers,  his  codifications  of  law  having 
secured  national  and  international  recognition. 
MARSHALL  O.  ROBERTS  had  ventured  with  equal 
success  upon  the  ocean  and  upon  the  land.  WILSON 
G.  HUNT  was  a  conservative,  broad-minded  and 
eminently  successful  New- York  merchant.  MOSES 


15 

TAYLOE  was  one  of  the  most  far-sighted  and  eminent 
bankers  and  projectors  of  America.  PETEE  COOPER 
had  overcome  almost  insurmountable  obstacles  in 
his  career,  and  at  ninety  years  of  age  was  still  quick 
in  his  sympathy  with  the  growth  of  the  City,  the 
development  of  his  country,  with  the  needs  of  man- 
kind and  with  every  effort  for  the  education  and  as- 
sistance of  youth. 

Before  this  assemblage  Mr.  FIELD  placed  the  pro- 
ject of  an  Atlantic  cable.  The  wire  which  could  be 
successfully  laid  under  the  ocean  had  not  yet  been 
invented  or  manufactured.  The  possibilities  of  the 
construction  of  such  a  line  had  not  been  tested.  The 
perils  and  obstacles  between  Europe  and  America 
and  in  the  depths  of  ocean  were  unknown.  The 
factors  presented  to  these  men  of  caution  and  of 
sense  were,  a  letter  from  Lieut.  MAUEY,  of  the 
United  States  Navy,  expressing  a  belief  in  a  level 
plateau  under  the  ocean  between  Newfoundland  and 
Ireland ;  a  letter  from  Prof.  MOESE,  then  radiant 
with  the  young  fame  of  his  successful  telegraph, 
saying  that  though  it  never  had  been  tried,  he  yet 
believed  a  message  could  be  transmitted  through 
three  thousand  miles  of  wire ;  and  the  enthusiasm 
and  confidence  of  CYEUS  W.  FIELD.  "It  will  unite 
the  Old  World  and  the  New,  it  will  promote  peace 


16 

and  civilization,  it  will  help  commerce,  it  will  bring 
our  country  in  contact  with  the  world,  and  upon  that 
I  will  stake  my  reputation,  my  undivided  time  and 
energies  and  my  fortune,"  said  Mr.  FIELD.  "This  is 
more  patriotism  than  business,"  was  the  answer  of 
his  guests,  "but  we  will  furnish  the  money  re- 
quired." 

Before  the  laying  of  the  cable  could  be  commenced 
the  wires  must  be  put  under  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence  and  stretched  through  four  hundred  miles 
of  unbroken  wilderness  which  had  never  been 
traversed  by  man,  across  Newfoundland  to  St.  Johns. 
As  if  upon  a  holiday  excursion,  the  party  sailed 
from  New- York,  to  lose  their  line  in  the  Gulf 
of  St.  Lawrence,  and  returned  chastened  and 
dispirited.  Again  Mr.  FIELD  set  forth,  this  time  to 
complete  his  enterprise  to  the  point  where  the  con- 
nection could  be  made  with  the  expected  cable  from 
Europe.  He  went  abroad  as  a  missionary  in  1856, 
preaching  the  cable  and  its  opportunities  to  English 
statesmen  and  bankers.  There  was  no  need  of  his 
arguing  its  value ;  that  was  thoroughly  understood 
on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  The  fleet  was 
gathered.  It  left  the  coast  of  Ireland  with  its 
precious  burden,  speeded  by  cheers  and  salutes  and 
guns,  to  have  the  line  break  when  three  hundred 


17 

miles  from  the  shore.  Undaunted,  undismayed, 
nerved  with  new  energy  by  defeat,  made  of  the  stuff 
with  which  the  world's  conquerors  have  been  en- 
dowed, CYRUS  FIELD  appealed  once  more  to  falter- 
ing friends  on  both  sides  of  the  water.  Once  more 
they  responded.  The  United  States  and  Great 
Britain  contributed  the  best  frigates  of  their  navies, 
which  sailed  in  company  to  mid-ocean,  where,  as  a 
sign  of  the  amity  and  concord  which  was  to  follow 
success,  the  American  man  of  war  steamed  with  her 
freight  of  coil  toward  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  the 
British  man  of  war,  with  her  half  of  it,  toward 
America.  Hundreds  of  miles  of  wire  had  found  a 
bed  at  the  bottom  of  the  ocean  and  been  success- 
fully tested,  when  the  storms  of  the  sea  broke  the 
cable,  and  the  expedition  returned  to  England. 

The  indomitable  pluck  found  in  the  Puritan  strain 
spurred  dying  hope  to  one  last  effort,  and  the 
cable  was  laid.  President  BUCHANAN  sent  his  mes- 
sage to  Queen  VICTORIA,  and  the  Queen  responded 
with  equal  cordiality  and  gratitude.  The  world  was 
aflame  with  eager  expectation  and  joy.  The  builder 
came  to  our  City  a  conqueror,  to  be  welcomed  with 
ovations  and  a  triumph  as  significant,  as  grand  and 
as  national,  as  any  which  ever  hailed  a  CAESAR,  with 
the  world  at  his  chariot  wheels,  entering  imperial 


18 

Rome.  The  messages  continued  to  fly  back  and 
forth.  Then  came  the  dramatic  and  tragic  end. 
There  were  no  hecatombs  of  dead,  no  wailing  of 
wounded,  no  bereaved  homes,  but  there  was  a 
wreck  and  destruction  of  hope  involving  more 
people  and  more  countries  than  resulted  from  any 
other  disaster  of  the  ages.  While  the  guns  were 
booming,  the  torchlights  flashing,  and  the  rockets 
bursting  in  air,  on  that  very  night  the  cable  of  1858 
ceased  to  work.  The  first  shock  over,  the  mad- 
dened populace,  looking  as  ever  for  a  victim,  pur- 
sued the  victor  of  yesterday  as  the  fraud  of  the 
morrow.  Torrents  of  invective  and  of  epithet  from 
the  press,  the  exchanges  and  the  public  were 
poured  upon  the  scheme  and  its  author.  "  The 
cable  had  never  worked  ;  the  messages  were  all 
false  ;  we  have  been  tricked  and  deceived  for  stock- 
jobbing purposes,"  was  the  popular  cry.  To  add  to 
the  troubles  of  the  City's  defeated  and  discredited 
guest,  the  financial  cyclone  which  was  then  sweep- 
ing the  country  scattered  his  fortune. 

Few  strains  in  the  blood  of  the  human  race,  except 
that  of  CROMWELL  and  his  IRONSIDES,  of  BREWSTER 
and  CARVER,  and  their  companions,  who  had  framed 
the  great  charter  of  liberty  in  the  cabin  of  the  May- 
flower, could  have  survived  this  trial,  humiliation 


19 

and  disaster.  But  CYRUS  FIELD  arose  from  the 
wreck  of  his  fortune,  his  hopes  and  his  reputation, 
with  sturdier  faith  and  sterner  purpose.  Forty 
times  he  crossed  the  seas.  Congresses  and  Parlia- 
ments, the  Cabinets  of  Presidents  and  the  Ministers 
of  the  Queen,  boards  of  trade  and  chambers  of  com- 
merce, the  parlors  of  bankers  and  the  directors' 
rooms  of  banks,  the  libraries  of  scientists  and  the 
moss-grown  halls  of  ancient  universities,  became 
familiar  with  this  intrepid  and  irrepressible  enthu- 
siast. For  eight  long  years  he  pursued  his  quest, 
exhibited  his  maps,  submitted  his  tests,  formulated 
his  calculations  and  addressed  his  appeals.  There 
is  no  human  power  which  can  resist  the  assaults  of  a 
man  of  genius,  energy  and  irrevocable  purpose,  who 
believes  that  he  is  right  and  is  battling  for  a  great 
cause.  The  great  powers  of  the  world,  government 
and  finance,  surrendered  to  CYRUS  FIELD  in  1866. 

The  adventures  and  alarms,  the  machinery  broken 
and  repaired,  the  alternate  hopes  and  despair,  the 
forces  of  nature  in  the  Atlantic  working  their 
mightiest  against  the  domination  of  the  skill,  the 
invention,  the  will  and  the  genius  of  man  on  the 
Great  Eastern  during  the  three  weeks  while  the 
cable  was  paying  out  from  her  stern,  and  on  either 
side  of  the  ocean  nations  awaiting  the  result,  pre- 


20 

sented  a  picture  unequalled  in  all  the  marvellous 
stories  which  have  aroused  the  eloquence,  the  poetry 
and  the  painting  of  the  centuries  in  the  marches  aiid 
battles  of  history. 

When  I  was  in  Genoa,  a  year  ago,  looking  upon 
that  splendid  statue  of  COLUMBUS,  which  is  its  chief 
monument,  I  noticed  upon  the  base  this  inscription : 
"There  was  one  world.  He  said,  'let  there  be  two,' 
and  there  were  two."  After  four  centuries  Mr. 
FIELD,  with  his  cable,  had  reunited  the  two  worlds, 
and  in  gladness  and  peace  the  earth  was  one. 

The  first  message  on  MORSE'S  telegraph  was  the 
exclamation  of  wonder  and  thanksgiving:  "What 
hath  God  wrought."  The  aspiration  of  the  nations, 
breathed  simultaneously  at  the  eastern  and  the 
western  ends  of  the  Atlantic  cable,  was  "  Glory  to 
God  on  high,  and  on  earth  peace  and  good  will 
among  men." 

A  happy  commentary  upon  the  far  reaching  influ- 
ence and  ultimate  results  of  this  quick  communica- 
tion between  America  and  Europe  was  found  among 
the  first  of  the  messages  which  flashed  across  the  wire. 
This  was  the  announcement  of  the  agreement  to 
submit  the  Alabama  claims  to  arbitration.  It  was 
the  beginning  of  that  movement  for  the  peace  of  the 
world  by  which  the  disputes  of  nations  shall  be 


21 

settled,  not  by  the  arbitrament  of  arms,  but  by  the 
calm  procedure  of  judicial  tribunals.  No  power  can 
estimate  and  no  language  adequately  state  the 
benefits  derived  from  the  Atlantic  Cable,  and  the 
others  which  have  been  subsequently  laid,  by  the 
United  States  and  by  the  Old  World.  Commerce 
has  been  revolutionized,  inter-communication  be- 
tween the  different  parts  of  the  earth  quickened,  and 
universal  intelligence  disseminated.  The  people 
have  been  benefited  in  cheaper  living,  better  homes, 
higher  thinking  and  broader  education ;  peace  has 
been  promoted  among  nations,  and  the  American 
Republic  has  taken  its  place  among  the  governments 
of  the  world,  to  both  maintain  the  position  in  which 
WASHINGTON  placed  it  of  non  interference  in  the 
politics  of  other  continents,  and  to  enforce  by  the 
stern  application  of  the  MONKOE  doctrine,  non-inter- 
ference by  the  governments  of  other  continents  in  the 
politics  or  the  governments  of  the  Americas.  Upon 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,  the  mother 
country  and  the  great  Republic,  the  result  has  been 
such  constant  and  instantaneous  communication, 
such  close  and  intimate  relations,  such  a  volume  of 
commercial  exchanges,  such  an  interchange  of 
peoples  and  of  ideas,  that  while  disputes  will  be  im- 
possible to  avoid  and  differences  must  continually 


arise,  they  will  always  be  settled  with  peace  and 
honor. 

The  story  of  nations  is  contained  in  multitudes  of 
volumes  and  fills  libraries,  but  a  few  providential 
and  marvellous  events  have  sown  the  seeds  of 
history.  In  a  lifetime  of  earnest  study  one  could 
hardly  grasp  the  details  of  the  rise  and  fall  of 
dynasties  and  kingdoms,  of  races  and  peoples,  of 
politics  and  parties,  of  invention  and  discovery,  and 
of  philosophies  and  religions.  In  a  broad  generaliza- 
tion the  wonderful  development  of  modern  times  can 
be  traced  to  three  eras — the  Crusades,  the  discovery 
of  America  and  the  laying  of  the  Atlantic  Cable. 

Last  Sunday  was  celebrated  at  Clermont,  in 
France,  the  eight  hundredth  anniversary  of  the 
preaching  of  the  sermon  by  PETER  the  Hermit, 
which  led  to  the  first  Crusade.  Europe  was  then 
groaning  under  the  iron  heel  of  the  feudal  system. 
There  was  no  law  but  the  despotic  will  of  the  petty 
baron,  and  no  protection  against  his  exactions  and 
the  outrages  of  his  army  of  retainers.  The  Church 
offered  refuge,  but  it  was  not  strong  enough  to  pro- 
tect the  weak  and  the  many  against  the  armed  might 
of  the  few.  A  pall  of  ignorance  and  of  superstition 
rested  upon  the  western  world.  This  inspired  priest 
moved  alike  princes  and  people  to  a  supreme  effort 


for  the  rescue  of  the  holy  sepulchre  from  the  grasp  of 
the  infidel.  The  Crusades  broke  the  strength  of  the 
barons,  increased  the  authority  of  both  the  Church 
and  the  State,  and  brought  about  that  concentration 
of  power  which  made  possible  constitutional  govern- 
ment and  parliamentary  liberty.  They  opened  the 
way  for  Runnymede,  for  Magna  Charta,  for  the 
Bill  of  Rights  and  for  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence. The  East  had  all  the  culture  of  the  world.  It 
had  all  the  literature,  the  arts  and  the  sciences,  which 
existed  in  that  age.  It  possessed  organized  com- 
merce and  enlightened  merchants.  The  contact  of 
brute  force  from  Europe  with  this  higher  civilization 
cultivated  the  paladin  and  the  palmer,  and  brought 
back  to  Europe  a  revival  of  literature,  an  impulse 
for  trade,  and  an  ambition  for  invention  and  dis- 
covery. The  Crusades  founded  the  universities 
which  gave  to  the  middle  age  its  scholars  and  phi- 
losophers. They  brought  out  from  the  libraries  the 
hidden  treasures  of  the  ancient  world,  and  through 
the  Greek  and  Latin  authors  made  possible  the 
names  whose  works  are  part  of  the  treasures  of 
mankind.  To  them  and  their  results  can  be  traced 
the  telescope,  the  microscope,  the  compass,  and 
crowning  them  all  in  its  beneficent  influences,  the 
printing  press.  It  required  four  hundred  years  to 


24 

accomplish  these  results  and  bring  Europe  up  to 
this  standard. 

Then  COLUMBUS  wandered  from  court  to  court, 
pressing  upon  royal  and  unwilling  ears  his  belief  in 
a  Western  hemisphere.  Others  had  discovered  this 
continent,  but  the  times  were  not  ripe  for  the  an- 
nouncement or  the  appreciation  of  the  fact.  In  the 
fullness  of  preparation  the  imperious  and  resistless 
COLUMBUS  compelled  audience  for  his  scheme  and 
fleets  for  his  adventure.  The  discovery  of  the  New 
World  became  the  most  important  chapter  in  the 
history  of  the  human  race.  Far  beyond  its  material 
advantages  in  affording  homes  for  the  crowded  pop- 
ulations of  the  Old  World,  were  the  opportunities 
which  it  gave  for  the  development  and  practice  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty.  Under  the  benign  and 
wonder  working  influences  of  these  principles,  this 
Republic  has  flowered  and  flourished  as  the  home  of 
the  oppressed,  as  the  land  of  the  free,  as  the  exem- 
plar of  man's  opportunities  for  governing  himself, 
and  as  a  disseminator  of  the  value  and  possibility  of 
liberty  around  the  globe. 

The  United  States  of  1854,  when  these  gentlemen 
met,  were  as  distinct  from  the  United  States  of 
to-day  as  1854  was  distant  from  the  time  of  the 
Revolutionary  War.  They  were  isolated  from 


25 

Europe  by  the  trackless  ocean,  and  separated  by  an 
eight  days'  journey  from  its  shores.  This  infrequent 
and  difficult  contact  with  the  world  promoted  pro- 
vincialism and  protected  slavery  in  our  Republic. 
We  were  not  ready  for  instantaneous  communication 
with  the  Old  World  to  preach  by  lightning  from 
day  to  day  the  lessons  of  our  liberty  so  long  as 
under  our  Constitution  and  laws  four  millions  of 
human  beings  were  held  in  bondage.  When  the 
cable  was  projected  all  parties  in  the  United  States 
were  discussing,  not  whether  slavery  should  be 
abolished,  not  whether  the  stigma  should  be  re- 
moved, not  whether  the  curse  should  be  obliterated, 
but  whether  it  should  be  extended  over  virgin  terri- 
tories. All  parties  were  agreed  that  it  should  be 
protected  by  the  power  of  the  Government  where  it 
already  existed.  In  the  eight  years  following  the 
failure  of  the  cable  of  1858  the  civil  war  had  both 
devastated  and  purified  the  land.  Slavery  was  gone, 
the  Republic  was  free,  and  the  principles  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  were  the  fundamental 
law  of  the  country.  The  regenerated  and  disen- 
thralled Republic,  with  the  stars  of  its  flag  un- 
dimmed,  was  prepared  by  example  and  theory  to 
give  to  people  suffering  under  oppression  every- 
where, sympathy,  encouragement  and  moral  help. 
Thus  while  four  hundred  years  after  the  Crusades 


26 

had  enlightened  Europe,  COLUMBUS  discovered 
America,  so  four  hundred  years  after  COLUMBUS  set 
up  his  banner  on  San  Salvador  the  Atlantic  cable 
united  our  country  in  instantaneous  communication 
with  every  part  of  the  earth.  For  the  gratification 
of  our  national  pride,  and  for  the  recognition  of  our 
prestige  and  power,  we  were  happily  prepared  for 
this  daily  review  of  our  development  and  progress. 

The  six  gentlemen  who  met  in  the  little  library  in 
Gramercy  Park  forty  years  ago  have  all  joined  the 
majority  beyond  the  grave.  There  was  no  publicity 
given  to  their  gathering,  and  the  results  of  their 
evening  conference  failed  to  attract  the  attention  of 
the  Argus-eyed  press.  But  the  States  General  of 
Holland,  staking  the  resources  of  their  country  upon 
the  issue  of  religious  liberty  ;  the  barons  at  Runny- 
mede,  forcing  from  the  throne,  with  their  swords, 
the  principles  of  civil  liberty  ;  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, formulating  the  measures  which  should  dedi- 
cate a  continent '  to  the  equality  of  all  men  before 
the  law ;  neither,  nor  all  of  them,  accomplished  any 
greater  results  for  mankind  than  those  which  will 
flow  in  future  ages  from  the  success  of  the  enter- 
prise started  so  courageously  by  the  gentlemen 
whose  portraits  will  henceforth,  upon  yonder  his- 
torical canvas,  adorn  the  walls  of  this  venerable 
Chamber. 


27 


REPLY  OF  ALEXANDER    E.  ORR,  PRESIDENT  OF  THE 
CHAMBER. 

LADIES  AND  GENTLEMEN  :  I  think  we  are  all  of 
one  mind  that  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  is  unusu- 
ally favored  this  afternoon,  not  only  as  the  recipient 
of  a  superb  historic  painting,  commemorative  of  a 
great  scientific  and  commercial  achievement,  but 
also  in  having  it  presented  in  language  that  is  akin 
to  a  beautifully  conceived  epic  poem.  I  am  sure 
that  the  words  which  Mr.  JESUP  and  Doctor 
DEPEW  have  so  charmingly  spoken  to  us  have 
found  a  permanent  abiding  place  in  all  our  hearts. 

You  may  remember,  perhaps,  the  story  that  has 
been  told  of  a  compositor  who,  when  setting  the 
type  of  SHAKESPEARE'S  play  of  HAMLET,  came  to 
that  place  in  the  manuscript  where  the  hero  is  made 
to  moralize  after  this  fashion  : 

"  There  are  books  in  the  running  brooks, 
Sermons  in  stones,  and  good  in  every  thing." 

The  compositor  paused,  and  critically  glanced  a 
second  time  at  tke  text.  "  Why,  no,"  he  said, 
"  there  is  surely  something  wrong  here.  Whoever 


28 

heard  of  '  sermons  in  stones '  and  '  books  in  brooks ;' 
the  author  must  have  been  sadly  mixed  when  he 
wrote  these  lines,  but  I  shall  set  him  right ;  I  will 
put  the  sermons  back  into  the  books  and  the  stones 
into  the  brooks,  where  they  properly  belong,  and 
then  all  will  be  well,"  and  so  he  set  the  type  to 
read  : 

"  There  are  stones  in  the  running  brooks, 

"  Sermons  in  books,  and  good  in  every  thing." 

The  compositor  was  altogether  too  practical,  and 
lacked  imagination.  He  had  yet  to  learn  that  the 
great  book  of  nature  is  the  immediate  handiwork  of 
the  Almighty,  and  that  to  the  thoughtful,  the  con- 
templative and  the  Christian  man,  the  rocks  and 
mountains,  the  hills  and  valleys,  the  rivers  and 
streamlets,  the  trees  and  flowers,  speak  with  an 
eloquence  superior  to  that  of  sermons  that  may  be 
found  in  books  or  preached  from  the  most  intellec- 
tual pulpits. 

And  so  this  picture  will  be  a  continuous  inspira- 
tion of  encouragement  for  all  time  to  come  to  those 
who  look  upon  it  and  study  its  story  of  faith,  and 
hope,  and  perseverance,  and  patience,  and  courage, 
and  philanthropic  purpose,  and  genuine  and  loyal 
friendships  in  the  crucial  time  of  need,  and  of 


abiding  confidence  in  scientific  research  and  com- 
mercial enterprise,  as  a  means  of  overcoming  what 
may  appear  at  first  sight  to  be  insuperable  obstacles 
in  the  pathway  of  the  world's  advancement. 

Many  thoughts  have  been  suggested  by  the 
eloquent  words  of  Mr.  JESUP  and  Doctor  DEPEW 
that  deserve  our  serious  consideration,  but  it  seems 
to  me  the  one  that  is  now  most  prominent  to  the 
commercial  mind,  is  the  intimate  relationship  that 
exists  between  science  and  commerce,  and  the 
mutual  benefits  that  each  enjoys  as  a  result  of  this 
close  compact.  Science  is  encouraged  and  stimu- 
lated to  further  and  more  comprehensive  research, 
because  commerce  promptly  adapts  to  her  own  uses 
those  wonderful  discoveries  that  overcome  the  draw- 
backs of  time  and  space  and  the  many  other  hinder- 
ances  that  have  heretofore  stood  in  the  way  of  her 
more  rapid  and  successful  development.  Commerce 
is  exceedingly  appreciative  and  generous,  and  in 
these  times  of  intense  commercial  activity,  science 
is  made  to  understand  that  for  all  her  discoveries 
that  can  be  commercially  utilized,  there  awaits  a 
liberal  commercial  value,  and  hence  the  present  age 
is  one  of  remarkable  energy  in  the  line  of  scientific 
invention. 

What   new  fields  the    scientist   of   the    coming 


30 

generation  will  open  up,  and  what  new  appliances 
will  be  offered  to  the  commerce  of  the  future  it  is 
absolutely  impossible  for  us  to  determine,  but  this 
we  do  know,  however,  that  the  college  student 
(indeed,  I  might  almost  say,  the  school  boy)  of  to- 
day, holds  as  household  words  the  scientific  mys- 
teries of  yesterday,  and  so  it  will  ever  be,  till  know- 
ledge culminates,  and  "we  shall  know  even  as  we 
are  known ;"  and  when  that  time  comes,  science, 
which  is  now  sometimes  prone  to  stray  from  "  the 
straight  and  narrow  path"  into  the  realms  of  scepti- 
cism, will  be  found  to  be  in  line  with  the  gospel  of 
the  great  and  glorified  Redeemer  of  Calvary,  because 
"the  earth  shall  (then)  be  full  of  the  knowledge  of 
the  Lord,  as  the  waters  cover  the  sea." 

Mr.  JESUP  and  Doctor  DEPEW,  in  the  name  of 
and  on  behalf  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  the 
State  of  New- York,  I  accept,  with  pleasure  and 
pride,  and  thankfulness  this  magnificent  historic 
picture.  We  shall  esteem  it  the  masterpiece  of  our 
art  collection,  and  when  we  come  to  possess  our  own 
building,  which  I  trust  we  shall,  at  no  very  distant 
period,  we  will  honor  it,  and  we  shall  honor  our- 
selves by  giving  to  it  the  place  of  honor  on  our 
walls. 

Mr.  JESUP,  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee,  which 


31 

lias  so  admirably  fulfilled  its  mission,  will  you 
kindly  grant  us  the  further  favor  of  conveying  to  the 
donors  of  this  most  beautiful  gift,  assurances  of  the 
fullness  of  our  appreciation,  our  gratitude,  ]and  our 
thanks. 


DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  PAINTING. 

The  painting  represents  a  meeting  of  the  Atlantic 
Cable  Projectors  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  CYEUS  W. 
FIELD  on  Gramercy  Park.  Mr.  PETER  COOPER  is 
presiding.  Mr.  FIELD  is  calling  attention  to  a  chart 
of  Trinity  Bay,  pointing  to  Heart's  Content  as  a 
safe  harbor  for  landing  the  cable.  Mr.  DAVID 
DUDLEY  FIELD  stands  by  the  President  with  a  law 
book.  Mr.  CHANDLER  WHITE  is  handing  estimates 
of  expense  to  Mr.  MARSHALL  0.  ROBERTS  ;  next 
to  whom,  at  the  table,  is  Mr.  MOSES  TAYLOR,  listen- 
ing to  Mr.  FIELD'  s  argument ;  near  whom,  at  the 
end  of  the  table,  stands  Mr.  WILSON  G.  HUNT, 
who,  though  he  joined  them  some  time  after  their 
first  organization,  remained  a  staunch  supporter  of 
the  project  to  the  end.  Prof.  SAMUEL  F.  B.  MORSE, 
the  Electrician  of  the  Company,  is  standing  behind 
Mr.  ROBERTS,  and  by  his  side  Mr.  DANIEL  HUN- 
TINGTON,  the  artist,  sketching. 

The  size  of  the  canvas  is  seven  feet  three  inches 
by  nine  feet. 


DONORS  OF  THE  PAINTING. 

The  ESTATE  OF  PETER  COOPEE,  by  ABEAM  S. 
HEWITT,  Executor. 

The  ESTATE  OF  WILSON  G.  HUNT,  by  EDWAED 
T.  HUNT  and  ELLEN  D.  HUNT. 

MORRIS  K.  JESUP. 

Miss  MARY  M.  ROBERTS. 

GEORGE  J.  GOULD. 

THE  WESTERN  UNION  TELEGRAPH  COMPANY,  by 
THOMAS  T.  EOKEET,  President. 

J.  PIEEPONT  MORGAN. 

JOHN  T.  TERRY. 

EDWIN  GOULD. 

Mrs.  MELISSA  P.  DODGE. 

WILLIAM  E.  DODGE. 

D.  WILLIS  JAMES. 

SAMUEL  D.  BABCOCK. 

JAMES  M.  CONSTABLE. 

CORNELIUS  VANDERBILT. 

Mrs.  PERCY  R.  PFNE. 

GEORGE  C.  TAYLOR. 


34 

Mrs.  ROBERT  WINTHROP. 
Mrs.  GEORGE  LEWIS,  Jr. 
HENRY  A.  C.  TAYLOR. 
F.  FREDERIC  GUNTHER. 
KUHN,  LOEB  &  Co. 
CORNELIUS  N.  BLISS. 
CHARLES  A.  HOYT. 
HUGH  N.  CAMP. 
WILLIAM  H.  WEBB. 
HENRY  HENTZ. 
ALEXANDER  E.  ORR. 
GEORGE  BLISS. 
JOHN  CROSBY  BROWN. 
JAMES  MCCREERY. 
JOHN  CLAFLIN. 
CHARLES  LANIER. 
JAMES  SPEYER. 
JOHN  SLOANE. 
JAMES  A.  HEARN  &  SON. 
JAMES  W.  PINCHOT. 
R.  H.  MACY  &  Co. 
CHARLES  L.  TIFFANY. 
H.  C.  FAHNESTOCK. 
JOHN  L.  RIKER. 
MALCOLM  GRAHAM. 
D.  O.  MILLS. 


36 


A.  A.  Low. 

W.  BAYARD  CUTTING. 

C.    P.    HUNTINGTON. 

JOHN  D.  CRIMMINS. 
JOHN  1).  JONES. 
ISAAC  STERN. 
RICHARD  T.  WILSON. 
CHARLES  BUTLER. 
JOHN  S.  KENNEDY. 


ry*-/wr." 

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